The Strange and Wonderful Tale of Allen Walker
by HikariHana97
Summary: When Yuu Kanda saves an adolescent boy from thugs and offers to take him home with him, Kanda finds out some strange things about an odd-looking boy by the name of Allen Walker. (Yullen, AU, Rated M for later chapters if you know what I mean)
1. I: Get in the Car

**One: Get in the Car**

As much as he was used to being alone, Yuu Kanda found himself very lonely. Rain alternated between bucketing and pouring outside and it pattered against the floor-to-ceiling windows of Yuu's large, penthouse apartment. An old, leather-bound tome rested on his knees as he lounged in his reading chair. The old, faded words would have drawn him in on any other day, but on that cold, wet day, Yuu couldn't help but stare off into nothingness and feel empty.

His long, dark hair pooled around his waist and he twirled some of the soft strands between his fingers. The motion had always calmed and centred him, so he hoped it would bring his mind back into reality. Yet all to no avail, he violently slammed the book he was trying to read on the sturdy wooden table next to his chair and made an annoyed sound in the back of his throat. In frustration, he pushed his hair out of his face and began pacing around his apartment.

In something of a frustrated daze, Yuu stormed over to his fridge and pulled it open. Scanning the insides, he sighed gruffly; the fridge was pretty much empty save for an old bowl of stir-fry and a rotten apple right at the back of the fruit drawer. With a new resolve and determination, Kanda slammed the fridge shut, grabbed his keys, jacket and wallet and was out the door before he even thought to turn off the lights and TV.

Thankfully, the elevator didn't pick up any people on the way down to the basement car park, so Kanda was left to his own jumbled thoughts. Mentally, he made a list of things he intended to buy on his outing: noodles, rice, soy sauce, vegetables et cetera and so on. He would be in and out of the supermarket in record time and would be home to make a nice lunch for himself. He wouldn't worry about his lack of cooking skills for the time being, just getting the food. Surely, he would be able to make _something _edible. He was the great Yuu Kanda – bachelor and young, successful entrepreneur – for Christ sake.

Miraculously, there was barely any traffic on the way to the shopping centre and Kanda weaved through what cars were there in his sporty Audi R8 like a pro. He couldn't say the same for the shopping centre though; it was littered with families shopping for Christmas presents and teenagers wasting their time on buying meaningless 'stuff'. Kanda sighed heavily at his stupid decision to shop on a Saturday as he watched swarms of people moving around the various shops.

_I'll be in and out…just get what you need and go, _the annoyed older teen thought to himself as he tucked some of his long hair behind his ear demurely. Even with said long, dark hair and his fair skin, Kanda far from lacked masculinity with his tall frame and athletic frame. Lean muscle corded around his arms and made obvious that he obviously worked out to keep his body in shape.

At the supermarket, Kanda expertly grabbed a trolley and manoeuvred around the many people browsing the items on display. He headed straight for the fresh produce and threw various vegetables into his trolley and bypassed the fruit all together; Kanda wasn't fond of sweet things. Next, he moved to the meat section and picked out a few steaks and some chicken for a stir-fry. As he flew through aisle after aisle, Yuu's trolley was filled with all of his favourite foods; soba noodles, tea, eggs, rice… it went on.

Finally, his trolley was full and Kanda was ready to get the hell out of there. He was over the screaming kids and the rude old ladies who expected him to constantly move out of their way. A few times, young women had seen him and did that annoying thing where they blushed and looked away shyly. Any other guy probably would have smiled and winked at them or something, but not Yuu Kanda, no fucking way in Hell would he lower himself to that.

Such was one of the reasons Kanda was so pitifully alone.

After Kanda was out and through the checkout with his groceries, he was rushing out of the shopping centre as if his ass was on fire. He couldn't wait to get home, pack away his groceries, and then get frustrated over trying to cook when he knew he couldn't. _Maybe I should consider hiring a housekeeper,_ he thought absently to himself as he made his way over to his car, praying that no one had damaged it. If they had, he would hunt them down and murder them in the most excruciatingly painful manner he could think of.

When he was a few metres away from his car, he noticed a small group of men had crowded around something a few metres away. Suspicious, Kanda made his way over to his car with his hands curled painfully tight around the handle of the trolley. About a metre and a half away from the group, Yuu observed them with his cold, dark eyes. They seemed to be circling around something on the ground, occasionally kicking and spitting on it.

_Torturing an animal? Oh for fuck's sake…_ Not one to ignore such a cruel act (not that he hadn't been thinking about murdering people just a moment before) Kanda strode purposefully over to the group of men. His heart beat furiously within his chest and rage fuelled its erratic rhythm. Kanda had never really understood the appeal of violence just 'for the sake of it', and so his outrage grew exponentially as he caught ear of the taunts and filthy names they aimed at whatever or whoever they were torturing.

"Hey!" He growled as he neared the group of men. They all looked to be a little bit older than him and had muscles to match their inflated egos. Sure, they probably had brute strength, but when it came down to it, Kanda had speed and skill which would save him if it came to a fight. Most men underestimated him when it came to fights, but they had no idea the amount of time Kanda had put into training himself in all forms of martial arts when he was growing up.

The group turned around and huddled close together; keeping the thing they'd been beating hidden behind their beefy legs. Kanda glared at them from behind his bangs and repeatedly curled and uncurled his hands into fists. The group of guys – who looked to be about university age – smirked at Kanda and puffed out their chests stupidly. _What a group of jerk-offs…_

"Whaddya want faggot?" The tallest of the group sneered, eyeing Kanda's lean frame and long hair disdainfully. He was ripped to the point of looking stupid and had floppy blonde hair that fell into squinty brown eyes. Not the sharpest-looking knife in the drawer, he flipped Kanda off and bumped into his friends suggestively. The silence stretched out and the leader of the gang guffawed, "You okay faggot?"

"My name is not faggot, asshole," Kanda explained, as if speaking to a small child. Even so, his hands twitched and trembled with suppressed rage. He'd successfully distracted the group and hoped that whatever they'd been terrorising at least had the brains to run away.

The group of guys blinked at Kanda for a second, and then leaped at him like angry bears. Wearing his trademark scowl, Kanda shifted and slithered away from each of their attacks expertly. As the group of men looked around in confusion, Kanda started to attack them one by one, either pushing them to the ground or knocking them unconscious. When all but one of the meatheads remained, Kanda stalked him like the predator he was. With a squeal, the last guy grabbed one of his friends and ran off, the rest following soon after.

Finally, Yuu turned his attention to the bundle on the ground the gang had been terrorising, admittedly curious. The first thing Kanda noticed was a head of startlingly white hair. _Is it a dog?_ Kanda crouched next to the bundle of rags and reached out a hand. Just as he was about to rest his hand on the mass of white hair, a small hand darted out and latched onto Kanda's wrist.

Startled, Kanda tried to pull his hand away, but the thing had a strong grip and wouldn't let go. _So it's a human, _he thought to himself as he cleared his throat and tried once more to tear his hand from the person's grip.

"Uh – " He cleared his throat when his voice came out soft, "are you okay?" Not usually one to be concerned about complete strangers, Kanda fidgeted a little and used his free hand to push his hair out of his face. The person among the rags moved a little, but kept his face hidden. Softly, the person murmured something that Kanda couldn't hear. "What?"

The person lifted their head off the ground and turned to look at Kanda. As the white hair was pushed out of the way by a gloved hand, Kanda saw that the person was actually an adolescent boy that couldn't have been any older than sixteen at the most. He had wide, grey eyes and a strange, red scar that ran from above his eyebrow and then followed down onto his cheek. He had pale skin that looked even paler with his white hair and a cute face. Kanda sucked in a breath and instantly dropped his gaze when he caught himself staring at the teen.

"I'm hungry," the boy whined, his voice soft and shy. Slowly, he lowered his head so he could peer up into Kanda's dark eyes and gave him the best puppy-dog face he'd ever seen in his life. Obviously, the kid expected Kanda to get him food. Even after he'd so heroically saved him! The rudeness grated at Yuu, but he brushed it off.

Not really thinking straight, Kanda grabbed the boy's arm and lifted him off of the ground without much strain at all and started to walk back over to his car. "Stand there while I pack the groceries, okay beansprout?" The teen opened his mouth to protest at the nickname, but shut it again at the glare Kanda gave him.

So, the teen stood there quietly and watched his saviour neatly (almost too neatly) pack his groceries into the boot of his sports car. Trying to keep as much out of the way as he could, the teen tried to peer into the many grocery bags to see what his protector had bought. He was not surprised to see the bags full of vegetables and other healthy foods. The teen would never turn down food, even vegetables, but he was sad to see that the older teen who had saved him didn't even have a morsel of something sweet.

When Kanda had finished packing the groceries and walking the trolley to the nearest trolley bay, he sauntered up to the younger teen and stared at him. His resolve wavering, Kanda put his hand on the shoulder of the white-haired boy and led him around to the passenger side of his car. Even opening the door for him, Kanda grit his teeth and shoved the teen toward the door.

"Okay, get in the – " in a flicker of motion, two large, white cat ears suddenly stood to attention on the younger teen's head and he squeaked in surprise, "…car?"


	2. II: Enter the Cat-Boy

**Two: Enter the Cat-Boy **

Kanda's eyes seemed to bulge out of their sockets as he stared incredulously at the two furry cat ears sticking up on the white-haired youth's head. Nervously, the youth pulled his rages tighter around his shoulders, and as a result, a long white tail popped out from behind him. It swayed and twirled, as if waving over Kanda's attention. Too shocked for words, Kanda took a seemingly angry step toward the white-haired, cat-eared boy, who in turn scurried a few steps away.

Furiously, Kanda's mouth tried to spit out the mess of words and curses that were stuck in between his brain and his lips. In the back of his mind, he knew he probably looked like a moron with his mouth flapping open and shut as he ogled at the strange teen. Regardless, he remained frozen to the spot trying to form whatever words he could.

The cat-boy took a tentative half-step forward and reached out one of his small paws – _hands… hands dammit_ – as if to comfort the older teen. Slowly, his rounded pink lips moved and his boyish voice broke into the awkward silence, "Are-are you o-okay?" A shy blush painted his pale cheeks a pretty hue of pale pink and Kanda couldn't help but marvel at the colour.

The small voice of the younger teen pulled Kanda out of his daze and he turned to glare at the boy he'd saved not moments before. Glaring, he raised his hand to point a finger menacingly at the two, fluffy appendages resting on the white-haired boy's head. "Those aren't fake, are they?" Kanda all but growled at the younger teen as he leant forward to inspect the two ears closer.

Before he could move out of the way, the cat-boy's ears were in the surprisingly gentle grasp of his saviour. Kanda fingered each of the ears gently, feeling around for where they did indeed attach to the boy's head. Butterflies swarmed in his stomach and he watched the boy's expression closely. As he rubbed the ears, the younger teen's face turned from being shy, to blissful within seconds. So quietly he almost couldn't hear it, a strange motor-like sound came from the boy's chest. He was… purring?

As if he'd been burned, Kanda quickly took his hands away from the boy's ears and shuffled a few steps backwards to distance himself from the young enigma. The cat-boy kept his eyes close for a moment, and the two were bathed in a short silence that was no less one of the most awkward Kanda had ever experienced. Really, there he was, standing across from a white-haired boy who had cat ears and a tail and all he could think about was how soft the freaking ears were! It was like something out of a lame comedy gag.

It was no gag though.

The boy opened his eyes and looked up at Kanda with the most terrifying expression the older teen had ever seen. That's terrifying as in completely and utterly adorable. The younger boy's eyes were glazed over in a euphoric pleasure and his cheeks were still dusted that rosy pink. Kanda gasped and turned away from the admittedly attractive young man with a soft blush starting to paint his own cheeks.

Instead of clearing his throat, he let out a disdainful, "Che," and turned away from the younger teen to collect his thoughts. It's not like he came into acquaintance with cat-eared teenage boys all the time. What was he meant to do? Leave him? Take him to a hospital?

Take him home?

"Thank you," the younger teen said quietly, wringing his hands nervously and looking up at Kanda through obscenely long eyelashes. Kanda's heart skipped a beat as he caught sight of the teen's reflection in the car as he faced away from him. "I'm sorry for bothering you," with that, the kid bowed his head respectfully and turned around to leave. As he watched the slowly retreated back in the reflection on his shiny car, Kanda felt something tug at his heart.

_Don't turn around. Don't you dare turn around. Yuu Kanda, don't you dare fucking turn - _

He turned around, "Wait!" Instantly, the younger teen froze in his tracks, but didn't turn around. Kanda sucked in a breath through his teeth and took a few steps toward the younger teen. The cat-boys shoulders rose and he turned slightly to the side, but still didn't look at Kanda. Gathering what courage he had, Kanda spoke softly and as unthreateningly as he could, "Come home with me."

The boy instantly turned around, a surprised look plastered on his cute face. His grey eyes were wide and sparkling and his mouth seemed to be fighting to curl into a happy smile. That look made it worth it, and Kanda hesitantly gave a half-smile back to the younger teen and held out his hand. Gently, he waved the younger teen over.

A strange feeling gripped Kanda's heart as he gazed at the seemingly fragile teen before him. It wasn't the usual animosity he felt towards most people, but a warm feeling that curled around his heart. It reminded him of the simpler times in his life, when he hadn't had to worry about studying and money and looking after himself. It was a feeling that scared the shit out of him.

Brushing that off though, he led the boy to his car and once again opened the passenger door for him. Kanda couldn't help but stare a little at the tail that swooshed nonchalantly behind the younger teen. Oddly, he had the strongest urge to reach out and stroke it; but Kanda had never been one to give in to his urges.

Once they were both in the car and driving back to Kanda's apartment, a pregnant silence filled the car. Soft, classical piano filtered out from the speakers and calmed Kanda considerably. Even so, his hands gripped the steering wheel a little tighter than they needed to and a nervous sweat had broken out on the back of his neck. Constantly, Kanda removed over of his hands to push his hair back out of his face, or he would wind a strand of his around his fingers while waiting at the traffic lights.

Finally, when they were nearly home, Kanda spoke up. "You got a name, beansprout?" He huffed in the most unattractively gruff voice he'd ever managed to use. Internally, he slapped himself for sounding so hostile toward the younger teen, but quickly got over it when said teen looked over and smiled at him.

"Yeah, it's not beansprout, by the way..." He grouched in a manner that could only be described as passive-aggressive. For a moment, he waited and watched for his saviour's reaction, then continued a little more shyly, "My name's Allen. Allen Walker." _Allen huh...what an interesting name... _So lost in his thoughts, Kanda almost missed it when Allen shyly asked him, "what's your name?"

For a moment, Kanda actually had to think about it. Realizing how moronic he probably looked, he quickly said, "Kanda." Again, he couldn't help the gruffness in his voice when he answered the cat-boy named Allen. He was so used to speaking to people in such a way that it was automatic.

Allen hummed softly, as if he was acknowledging this small snippet of information and analysing it. He turned to Kanda and grinned, "Is that your first name, or your last name?" Allen seemed to have settled down, and Kanda just shifted a little uncomfortably as he burned the image of Allen grinning onto his retinas.

Then Kanda did something he _never_ did, ever. He told the strange kid his first name, "My first name is Yuu." His voice dropped and Kanda stared stubbornly at the road in front of him as he accelerated. Allen didn't answer for a moment, and instead observed his saviour's face closely.

"Yuu Kanda..." Allen mused softly to himself, as if testing how the name sounded in his mouth. Heat rose to Kanda's cheeks as he heard his beansprout - wait, his? - uttering his name over and over like a prayer. "Yuu Kanda... Yuu Kanda... Yuu Kanda..." Allen murmured Kanda's name over and over in that soft, shy voice of his.

As Kanda pulled in to the basement carport of his apartment building, he finally snapped. "Oi, beansprout," he growled lowly at the younger teen, "I didn't tell you my name so you could annoy me with it." Scowling, Kanda got out of his car and slammed the door a little but harder than he should have. In his mind, he sighed heavily at his stupid antics, but continued across the basement to the elevator with said beansprout following closely behind him.

The atmosphere in the elevator could have been interpreted in two ways: first, incredibly awkward; secondly, incredibly intense (if you catch the drift...). Kanda stood where at the very front of the elevator as he always did. As stealthily as he could, he watched Allen in the reflection on the door; as it seemed to be his new favourite activity. Allen however was trying to figure out how he could see millions of himself in the two mirror-covered walls of the elevators.

Kanda chuckled softly, "It's the infinity mirror effect; each mirror keeps bouncing back the image, so it looks like it goes on forever." Just full of information, Kanda was. Refusing to look the younger teen in the eye, Kanda didn't catch the warm smile Allen gave him as he finally turned away from the mirrors. As quietly as he could, Allen moved so he was standing closer to his saviour and absentmindedly twirled his tail between his fingers much like in the way he'd seen Kanda do with his hair earlier.

Not that he would admit it, but Kanda was really on-edge knowing just how close he was to the younger teen. In his mind's eye, he saw all-too-clearly his beansprout's odd white hair and shining grey eyes. His hand's practically itched with the urge to feel Allen's cat ears again and he couldn't help but distinctly remember the soft feel of the silky fur on the pads of his fingers. A heat Kanda hadn't felt in a while ignited in the pit of his stomach, and blood rushed to his cheeks and to other… regions. Maybe it was the fact that he was trapped in an elevator with Allen, or maybe left-over hormones from adolescence, but Kanda just wanted to –

The elevator abruptly came to a stop right at the top of the apartment building where Kanda's penthouse was. The doors opened and the two of them stepped out into the sparse foyer that led into the rest of Kanda's home; Kanda a little bit more flustered than he should be. On the right of the foyer, there was a slim black table set against the white wall and on it was a bowl that had a lotus blossom floating on water. To the right, a picture hung on the wall; a close-up photo of a blooming lotus again, but in black and white.

Kicking off his shoes, Kanda silently led Allen through into the open-plan living area with the kitchen to the right and the dining table and den to the left. All of the furniture was either black or a midnight blue colour and was sleek and modern. The dining table was a simple glass affair with a black iron frame and looked as if it had never been used. Allen could see a hallway just beyond the kitchen that probably led to the bedrooms.

As soon as he caught sight of the kitchen, Allen perked up and practically bowled Kanda over on his way to the fridge. Imagine his disappointment when he opened it to see it empty save for some disgusting-looking leftovers and rotten fruit. Closing the fridge gingerly, he quickly moved on to searching every nook and cranny of the kitchen searching for food. To his utter shock, Kanda's kitchen was completely void of any type of edible food.

Allen spun around viciously to face his saviour with an incredulous look on his face. "Where's all the food?!" The cat-boy practically screeched at a shocked and confused Kanda. Storming forward, Allen looked up into Kanda's face pleadingly, his cute-ray on full-blast. Silvery strands of hair fell into his eyes and Kanda couldn't help but melt at the sight his beansprout made. After not hearing an answer from the spaced-out mess that was Kanda, Allen grabbed his protector by the shoulders and shook him gently, "Food, Kanda!"

Kanda snapped out of his daze and registered Allen's question in his befuddled brain. Understanding dawned on him and for a moment he couldn't remember where the food was or where he'd even just come from. Then, as if a light had just flicked on in his brain, Kanda remembered and shrugged the beansprout's hands off of him.

"I left it in the car," he muttered, a little embarrassed, "I'll call up one of the staff to bring it up now." The one thing Kanda had always loved about being wealthy at his age, was that he never had to carry in his own groceries, not that he ever been out to buy them himself, but whatever.

Allen giggled childishly and his ears flickered quickly in response. "Oh!" He exclaimed in understanding as he made his way back out to the foyer with a confused Kanda following cautiously behind. "In that case, I'll collect them for you, master."

At this, Allen's eyes widened for a second before he turned and practically shot out of the apartment like a bullet. This left Kanda standing there bewildered for a moment, eyes glued to the space his beansprout has been occupying second before. Then the full effect of what Allen had called him made it to his brain and he exploded.

"_MASTER_?!"

* * *

Author's Note:

Okay, so I think it's time I just explained something. :)

The title: Okay, so if you hadn't already figured it out, my lame title has more meaning than just 'Here's a story about Allen Walker'. Oh no... the title was originally going to be 'The Strange and Wonderful TAIL of Allen Walker'... but I changed it because that's how awesome I am. So, if you read into it, the title doubles as saying 'Here's a story about Allen Walker' and 'OMG ALLEN WALKER HAS A STRANGE AND WONDERFUL TAIL!'

(Sorry if that was a really shit explanation... -_-")

Also my inspiration for this fic was actually 'this picture' ( post/26229704208/prrrr-reow-my-god ). Even though Kanda is the neko in this pic... well, let's just say Allen probably fitted the role better... in a way... (okay, in my head...)

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO'S READ, FAVOURITE-D, FOLLOWED AND REVIEWED THIS FIC! You're all amazing. I actually loved the reviews I got about how people were surprised to see a fic with a neko Allen. 3

Thanks again! 3

HikariHana97


	3. III: Welcome to the Pity-Party

**Three: Welcome tothe Pity-Party**

Kanda stood glued to the spot as one word repeated over and over in his mind like a broken record: '_master… master… master_'. Allen's surprised face flashed in time with the word like a neon sign advertising him in Kanda's mind. Why on earth would his beansprout call him 'master'? Better yet, where had he spent his life that he'd gotten into the habit of calling other men his 'master' anyway? A few horrifying scenarios occurred to Kanda, but he quickly pushed those to the furthest recesses of his mind. Surely Allen hadn't been some sort of 'entertainer'? Not at his age surely?

Questions swirled and attacked Kanda's brain, yet he quickly bolted after Allen. His heart was thumping wildly in his chest and he would like to have thought it was from anger or surprise, but it wasn't. This strange kid, his beansprout, exhilarated him. Allen was full of surprises and mystery, and all Kanda wanted to do was unravel him and his mysterious shroud. The delicious look of surprise on Allen's face called to the depths of Kanda's buried desire. Seeing the mystery-shrouded innocence reflected in the boy's eyes only made Kanda want to claim him as his own.

In the elevator, Kanda frantically paced from wall to wall. It seemed to take forever and a day to get from his apartment to the basement and he still hadn't figured out what exactly he would do with Allen when he caught him. Then, a surprisingly horrifying thought spawned in Kanda's mind: _what if I scared him off and he's run away? _In the back of his mind, Kanda knew the thought shouldn't have made him sad. Seriously, he'd just rescued the kid from some thugs and took him in. Why did the thought of his beansprout leaving make his heart ache so?

And again – what was with Allen suddenly being _his_ beansprout?

Brushing this aside, Kanda was out of the elevator in record time and was sprinting wildly to his car when he spotted a white head of hair on the other side of a row of cars. Frantically, Kanda made his way easily through the tight space between the parked vehicles and stopped right in front of a dazed Allen, who was carrying more groceries than his small frame should have been able to. He had three bags in each of his hands and more hanging from each of his forearms. Kanda couldn't help but notice the way the toned muscles of the cat-boy's biceps bulged under the thin fabric of his long-sleeved shirt.

Out of all of the things he could have said, all Kanda – one of the most successful young people in the country – could say was, "Where'd that rag you were wearing go?" Allen looked up at his rescuer in surprise and easily lifted one of his occupied hands to scratch idly at his head, then to inspect his shirt. He guessed that in his rush to collect his rescuer's groceries, it had fallen off of his shoulders. White locks of hair fell innocently into his eyes, and very slowly, Kanda reached over and brushed it away.

Dark blue eyes met shining grey ones and locked. Something just under the surface swam temptingly in the cat-boy's eyes, like mysterious, captivating koi fish swimming just below the shadows in a pond. Before he even knew what he was doing, Kanda laced his fingers into the silky hair of his beansprout. He silently marvelled at how soft it was; despite it looking like it was a totally unnatural colour. Like he'd bleached or coloured it to look the way it was. Of course, it was natural…_how?_

Both of them unconsciously started to lean closer to each other, their eyes never breaking that precious contact. Kanda's fingers tightened in Allen's hair and he deliberately took a step closer to the younger teen. Chest-to-chest, their warm exhales mixed and mingled in the small space between them. Kanda revelled in the feeling of having his beansprout so close, and slowly started to lean in with his eyes flickering down occasionally to glance at Allen's pouty, pink lips.

Kanda had never wanted to kiss someone so much in his entire life. Not that he'd found many people who he thought were worthy of kissing him. Maybe it was Allen's cute, boyish features or maybe it was Kanda's loneliness that drove him, but all he could think about was making the beansprout his. Just as the two were about to kiss with their eyes closed and heads tilted readily to the side, a car screeched out of a parking space further away in the lot and broke the spell the two were under.

Immediately, Kanda sprung away from the unsuspecting Allen so fast he nearly fell over backwards. Allen accidentally dropped the groceries that he had been gripping in each of his hands and they fell harmlessly to the ground. Without a word, Kanda bent down, picked them up and started his way back toward the elevator knowing that Allen would surely follow behind. Especially since food was involved.

Sure enough, Allen trailed cautiously behind his rescuer, his snow-white tail flickering behind him curiously. His grey eyes were glued to Kanda's back, and he mused on how much he loved the way Kanda's muscles moved and rippled through his shirt. It had been a massive mistake to accidentally call Kanda 'master', yet he hoped he'd at least be able to stay there a few nights before he was kicked out. Again.

Back in the apartment, Kanda placed the groceries he'd bought on the polished stone bench top, where Allen also placed his load of groceries. He looked ominously at the groceries, then at the expanse of his kitchen cupboards, and then back again as he contemplated finding a spot for everything he'd bought. It almost seemed as if all of the food he'd bought would never be able to fit inside his pantry and fridge. Regardless of the fact that he was sure the kitchen of his penthouse was larger than the average kitchen.

"Uh, mas- Kanda?" Allen stuttered softly, tugging cutely on the sleeve of Kanda's shirt. Instantly, Kanda's expression softened a little and he looked down at his beansprout with a mix of caution and curiosity playing behind his deep blue eyes. He hadn't missed Allen's near-mistake, but decided to file it away for later, when he'd convinced Allen to stay, claimed him as his and when he'd unearthed all of his beansprout's secrets; in no particular order, mind you.

_Wait…what?_

"Hmm?" Kanda smiled a little, the corners of his lips turning up in such an unfamiliar way, it felt as if he were stretching muscles he'd never used. For the first time in a while, Kanda didn't feel completely alone, and he had the beansprout to thank for it, regardless of the little time they'd actually been acquainted with each other. Just being in the presence of the younger teen stirred warm, glowing feelings in the dark depths of Kanda's heart that he'd thought had been forever lost.

Allen walked over to where the groceries were piled haphazardly on the counter. Turning, he faced Kanda with a serene smile plastered on his face. "How about I pack away these groceries and you go relax?" Before Kanda could reply, he already started to methodically pull the assorted foodstuffs out of the grey plastic bags and into the cabinets and fridge. Not wanting Allen to take care of it by himself, Kanda hesitantly moved closer and started to copy what Allen was doing.

It was obvious that Allen had experience with packing away groceries – unlike Kanda – and seemed comfortable even in the unfamiliar kitchen. Both of them worked silently, although the silence wasn't awkward. Kanda felt comfortable around the beansprout, as if he'd known him his entire life. It went beyond that, even, as Kanda still wasn't comfortable around the few friends he was still in contact with from his younger days.

Out of nowhere, as Allen was squeezing a bag of broccoli into the cooler drawer, he asked, "Kanda, how old are you?" Surprised at the sudden enquiry, Kanda paused as he was putting plastic bags in the cabinet under the sink. If it had been anyone else, Kanda probably would have exploded in a fit of rage at the somewhat rude question. Although, anyone who was anyone would know all about the young, just-out-of-school entrepreneur and would never have to ask his age.

Since it was his beansprout though, he grumbled, "I'm nineteen," sullenly. In reality, he was also curious about Allen, but kept his mouth shut in case it was a sensitive issue for him. As much as Allen seemed to be a sweet, innocent teenager, Kanda sensed something dark and forbidden about him. It was as if Allen was shrouded in a cowl of dark mystery and was smiling through a mask to reassure those around him. While this probably should have made Kanda even warier to trust the cat-boy, it only made Allen seem more intriguing; not that he would ever openly admit that though.

This darkness around the younger teen made Kanda feel a sort of kinship with him. For Kanda had also suffered a dark past. Abandoned when he was a small child, Kanda had been left to fend for himself in a brutal boy's orphanage. With his sullen, brooding temperament, none of the hopeful couples that came through wanted to adopt him or take him in to foster care. That was until Master Tiedoll came. A veteran of the army, Tiedoll had taken Kanda and two other boys into his care and had taught them all how to fight and defend themselves. After one of the boys passed away suddenly though, Tiedoll became alcoholic and Kanda was again left to fend for himself.

"Wow, really?!" Allen exclaimed in shock, pulling Kanda out of his reverie. The beansprout seemed genuinely shocked at Kanda's age, although most people who didn't know about him generally were. Especially after telling him he was a multimillionaire entrepreneur. He'd bypassed the last years of his schooling and had forced his way into university when he was fifteen, then made his millions investing what little money Tiedoll had left him after he'd died in the stock market. At nineteen, he was one of the most successful entrepreneurs of the time.

Kanda finished stuffing the plastic bags away and helped Allen put away the last of the groceries and turned to face him, "What? Does that surprise you, beansprout?" Without meaning to, Kanda's voice had come out low and aggressive. It was true that Kanda was a little bit hurt that Allen couldn't believe how young he was, considering his luxurious apartment and everything, but it didn't bother him _that much._ Did it?

Allen quickly dropped to his knees in front of a startled Kanda and palmed the hem of his pants. Unconsciously, Allen's tale reached around and wrapped inconspicuously around Kanda's ankle as he turned his chin up to look his rescuer in the face. The expression on Allen's face reminded Kanda of what someone would look like when repenting in an old-time church. The way the beansprout looked up at him made him pause, for the pure sorrow and fear in those eyes stopped him in his tracks. _What had his beansprout been through?_

"P-p-please master, please d-don't kick me out… please," Allen pleaded softly as tears gathered in his grey eyes and as sobs wracked his body. "I'm so sorry master, please forgive me," he mewled and buried his face in his hands as he knelt at Kanda's feet. Allen's tail gracefully moved from where it was wrapped around Kanda's leg to wrap around Allen as he curled in on himself – making himself as small as possible.

Suddenly, Kanda realised how similar Allen's behaviour was to his whenever he'd had to deal with Tiedoll while he was drunk. Kanda remembered kneeling at his foster-father's feet and begging him to leave him and his foster-brother – Marie – alone. He could almost feel the blows Tiedoll would rain down on him in quick succession, making his muscles ache for weeks on end.

At this, Kanda knelt down with Allen and pulled the sobbing boy into his strong arms. Dark blue-black hair pooled around them as Kanda guided Allen's head to the crook of his neck, where he sobbed softly. Small hands twined into the hair at the base of Kanda's neck and Allen innocently wrapped both of his legs around Kanda's middle. Entwined as they were, Kanda felt an answering heat – his libido – deep in the pit of his being. He knew that he could never take advantage of his beansprout in the state he was in, but still, he was aroused to be so close to him nonetheless.

Kanda's hand idly stroked Allen's back soothingly while the other rested on his head. Tears stained the older teen's shirt and he could feel their wetness on the skin of his shoulder. Gentle sobs wracked the smaller teen's body and Kanda noted the way his snowy ears were pressed flat against his head. Regret, thick and strong, tugged at Kanda's heart as he recalled the harsh, raucous tone he'd used with the obviously fragile teen.

After a while, Kanda didn't really know how long, Allen warily pulled his head free of the comfort of his saviour's neck to peer up at him. His grey eyes burned with a deep, soul-crushing sadness and fear that floored Kanda. Tears still clung stubbornly to the rims of his beansprout's eyes and as softly as he could, Kanda reached up and brushed the moisture away.

"Allen," he whispered softly, the horror and sadness clear in his voice, "what the hell happened to you? Why are you like this? Why did you call me 'master' before? Why are you crying?" All of the questions Kanda had been shoving to the back of his mind for consideration came springing to his lips. It was like his rational mind had gone on holiday and he was left with only his instinct to steer himself in the strange situation.

Kanda watched as Allen's face slowly changed from that of an utterly broken human being to that of a contrite young man. Instantly, the older teen hated the expression; the fake, brittle smile that didn't reach Allen's eyes and the coquettish tilt of his head, which seemed to be an automatic, rehearsed movement. Kanda wanted to explode, with anger, desire, frustration, sadness, empathy… the list of mind-boggling emotions he wasn't used to went on.

"Tell me, Allen." It was not a request, but an order. Kanda really hated that he had to order Allen, like a master, but he really wanted to know. He wanted to help his beansprout, in any way he could.

The contrite smile vanished from Allen's round, childish face and was replaced by a pained grimace. His soulful, grey eyes focused somewhere far in the past where Kanda could never hope to see. He didn't miss the subtle tightening of the younger teen's hand on his forearm, but it made him want to smile. Already, Allen was going to open up to him.

On a spur of the moment decision, Kanda effortlessly scooped a startled Allen into his strong arms and walked them to the large, comfortable arm chair in the den. Covered in soft pale-brown suede, it was perfect for curling up on. So, Kanda did just that and settled himself into the plush cushions of the chair with the smaller, fragile teenager cradled in his arms.

Allen softly began his tale, "I don't know why, but somehow, I was born with the ears and tail of a cat," grimly, Allen dipped his head forward to put his ears on display. "My…deformity drove my parents to leave me at a travelling circus' grounds, where they probably thought I rightfully belonged. I was about four or five I think." Alarmingly, tears started to well up in Allen's eyes again, but they weren't sad or fearful tears, but happy tears.

"At the circus, my father – or the man who I thought was my father – Mana, looked after me. Then he died, and I was alone again." His voice trailed off sadly, "All alone…"

"Allen…" The younger teen ignored a worried Kanda; lost in his memories.

The beansprout curled up smaller in Kanda's arms, resting his head delicately on his shoulder. "Then, as I was starving and walking the streets of some town, a man with red hair and wearing a black cloak took me in as his apprentice. He was a pimp." Kanda's arms tightened fractionally around Allen as a shiver ran down his spine. "He… forced me to work for him, and only him."

"I never learnt his name, he only ever told me to call him 'master'. Now, I guess it's just a habit to call older men, intimidating men, 'master'." This revelation stuns Kanda. He knew he was standoffish most of the time, as he liked his space, but intimidating?

Then, Allen started to cry – really cry this time. Big, gut-wrenching sobs from the pit of his being. Regret continued to attack at Kanda's heart; why did he have to make his precious beansprout have to relive all of that? Some other emotion started to well up in Kanda as well: a deep, knowing empathy. He knew some of what the broken teen in his lap had gone through, for he was broken too.

So, to take Allen's mind away from his grief, Kanda softly started to retell his own story. Like Allen, he didn't leave out a single detail; not of the orphanage, or Tiedoll or his brothers. He told Allen of the tough, solitary years of university where he was looked at like a freak and the nightmares he had every night of being utterly and completely alone in the world.

When Allen's tears dried and Kanda's story finished, the two of them sat in a pitiful silence. Yet, they both found solace in the fact that together, they were both pretty fucked up. Both of them were alone in the world; made for each other. As gently as he could, Allen leaned his head up as far as it would go and captured Kanda's lips in a quick, chaste kiss.

"Welcome to the pity-party," Kanda murmured, a small, shy smile playing on his usually scowling lips. Then, leaning down, he kissed Allen, deepening their contact and opening his mouth to welcome the younger teen's tongue inside.

And they got lost inside each other.

* * *

AN:

This chapter is longer, and kind of disappointing… yeah, there was some sexual tension at the beginning with Kanda's somewhat kinky mind glossing over possibilities, but then I just had to ruin it by telling both of their pasts. Sorry. But I really couldn't help myself.

Oh how I love to write for fucked-up characters. The joy. (That was not sarcasm.)


End file.
